Disclaimer: Ranma ½ belongs to Rumiko Takahashi and Viz Video and Winx Club belongs to Iginio Straffi and Rai S.p.A (NOT 4Kids!!!). Songs 'Obsession' belongs to .HACK//SIGN, and 'Talent for Love' belongs to Tenchi Muyo.
Note: this follows the Rai version of Winx as the 4Kids version butchered it too much, like with every anime it dubs.
Chapter 23: Go Virtual! Tecna's Trip!
Opening (.HACK//SIGN style, 'Obsession')
A static screen pops in. The 'Ranma Club' logo blurs in and the beats go.
How come I must know
Where obsession needs to go?
Tecna, in her Enchantix body, was wearing a sort of virtual visor as she flies around in a virtual world. Ranma's hands are seen typing on a keyboard.
How come I must know
The direction of relieving?
Tecna lands on a structure, then makes a wave with her hand, trailing green lightning. It opens up a portal in cyberspace and she leaps through. The 'Rama Club' logo comes out.
Deep in the night
Far off the light
Missing my headache
Tecna's face digitally forms in the back. It is replaced by Musa's then Layla's. Her face splits away.
Visions of light
Sweeter delight
Kissin' my loveache
Flora's face splits in. It is replaced by Stella's, then finally Bloom's. Her face splits away as Ranma walks out of the background towards the screen.
In the darkness was an orb of light. The Specialists' weapons orbit around it just as the orb obscures everything in its light. Split screen of Ranma's two forms. At each beat it shows a shot of a part of his/her body while occassionally going back to the orb. It finally shows both forms curled up, mirroring each other, then finally fusing, obscuring everything in light.
Deep in the night
Far off the light
Missing my headache
In the background is a close-up of Ranma's face as if he were in a trance.
Bloom walks by and throws a fireball towards the screen. Stella walks in and slashes with a sword of light she materialized in her hand. Flora enters while causing a trail of leaves and petals to follow her.
Visions of light
Sweeter delight
Kissin' my loveache
Musa drops in and throws some music notes in the air and rolls off before they crash to the ground. Layla walks in and causes a small flood to wash away the remenants of the notes and surfs away with it. Tecna pops in from the bottom with her back turn, then looks towards the screen, still wearing that visor. She reaches out, her form becoming a black silhouette.
In the back, Ranma's eyes snap open.
How come I must know
Where obsession needs to go?
How come I must know
Where the passion hides its feelings?
The phantoms of the Specialists fall one by one down a virtual portal.
How come I must know
Where obsession needs to go?
How come I must know
The direction of relieving?
Ranma rises up, makes a wave of his arm that calls up the Specialists' weapons in front of him, then fires them off, blackening out the screen. Enchantix Tecna breaks through the darkness and hovers in the air. She turns to look at Ranma and Ranma-chan, who were curled up and surrounded by a light aura, as if they were in stasis.
End opening
Saotome complex…
A week has passed since Layla's duel against Kodachi. The contest proved to be a harrowing experience. That psychotic gymnast tried to do everything in her power to finish off Layla simply because she has feelings for Ranma. However, the faerie of water proved to be too much for Kodachi to handle.
At this time, Kyoiya and the other members of the gymnastics club had made a full recovery from Kodachi's ambushes, much to Layla's relief. Her accomplishment had been talked about and praised throughout the school. Layla was humble about it, not letting her success go to her head, being a proper princess and all. Still, her and her friends' popularity rose from the event.
Nabiki was puzzled. She was certain that she and her cohorts had taken perfect photos of Layla during the match, but somehow the photos got deleted. No, not deleted, more like replaced, with ones of… brrr… Sumo Kuno. She needed income fast. Due to the Winx's popularity, the demand for anything concerning them was high, and Nabiki planned to capitalize on it. The trick was how.
Of course, Akane continued to hold nothing but contempt for Layla and her friends. Using her as a flail weight during the tournament was adding insult to injury, never mind the fact that Akane was the one who verbally assaulted Layla first. Again, Akane tried to attack Layla or the others for the incident, but like always, her attempts would get thwarted.
End of the day…
Shampoo and Ukyou had left to work at their respective restaurants. The Winx Club left for home. Ranma was a bit delayed when leaving school.
"Hello, Ranma."
Ranma's expression became stern as he saw who was standing near the school gates.
"Nabiki…"
The middle Tendo girl strutted up to Ranma with a haughty air. "Now is that a way to talk with an old friend?"
"I'm not even sure if I can even consider you a friend." Retorted Ranma.
"Ranma, I'm hurt." Nabiki said with mock sadness. "I thought we had a pretty close relationship."
"You only saw me as a method for a quick buck." Said Ranma.
"You had to have a way to earn your keep at my place." Nabiki said simply.
"Through extortion, not to mention sometimes at the expense of my life." (1)
"It's simply business."
"Well this business is off. I no longer stay at the Tendo Dojo, so I owe you nothing. Now excuse me." Ranma walks past Nabiki out the gate.
"On the contrary, Ranma, you still owe me a lot." Said Nabiki as she cuts off his path. "Damage to the dojo those months ago was pretty extensive, you know."
"And who invited them over to the wedding in the first place? The money you got from them should've covered the damages you instigated!"
"That only covered your already big tab for the past events. Plus, they're your 'friends'. Your friends, your mess."
Ranma's eyes narrowed. Even after all this time, she still planned to bleed him dry. "Since I left that place, I've cut off any ties I had with my father and your family. I don't owe you anything." He walks past her yet again.
"You've racked up quite the sum, Saotome." Nabiki called out. "However, there's a simple way to pay it all off in one fell swoop."
"And what might that be?" asked Ranma, not bothering to look back and kept walking. 'As if I didn't know…'
"Your six friends, they've grown quite popular at our school. People want to know everything they can about them, and they all come to me for it."
Ranma stops and turns to glare at Nabiki. "Stop right there, Nabiki. Whatever you're planning, you can just forget it."
"All I'm asking is that maybe you can take a few photos of them. I won't expect you to give them to me for free. I'll willingly buy them." Said Nabiki. "Maybe we can work together on this. You'll be the supplier of the goods, and I'll be the distributor. Those guys will willingly pay anything for just photos alone. We could make a profit."
Ranma was angry. How dare she ask him something like that? "Getting me involved in your money-making schemes is one thing, but getting them involved is another story completely! Leave them out of it! They're not objects! I'm not going to break their trust and invade their privacy just so you can make a profit! And I warn you not to try anything either, or you'll seriously regret it!"
Nabiki was unphased. Ranma was just a dumb jock, after all, who only knew how to beat down physical problems with his fists and knew nothing about how to deal with mental challenges, which was her forte. "And what are you going to do, Ranma? You don't know anything except how to fight."
"I'm a lot different from the guy you used to know, Nabiki…" said Ranma as he turned to leave. "I know how to fight in other ways, too. Believe you me, you don't want to see how."
With that said, Ranma heads for home, leaving Nabiki alone at the gate.
'Empty threats, Ranma. I will take what you owe me.'
Nabiki was sure that the incident with the pics at Layla's tournament was just a fluke. She'll try again to get any information on the Winx girls. Demand of them had risen, and she intends to capitalize on it. Soon, she'll learn to heed the warnings of others.
Saotome Complex…
"Tadaima…" said Ranma as he walked in. He was confused as there was no one there.
'Hmmm? Where is everyone?'
"Bloom? Flora? Anyone?"
Ranma walks towards the guestroom, thinking he may find at least one of the girls in there.
"Hello, Ranma."
The pigtailed-boy looks to see the violet-haired Tecna. She was sitting at a desk before her laptop. There were two strange-looking devices next to it.
"Hey, Tecna." Said Ranma. "Where is everyone?"
"Uh… they're just… out…" replied Tecna nervously.
"Oh…" said Ranma. 'Odd, it's almost like last week with Layla, but this time, it's Tecna…' He shakes out of his thoughts. "What're you doing?"
"Just checking out the internet." Replied Tecna. "It's so different from the one in Zenith, or even Magix."
"I can only imagine…" said Ranma.
Tecna looked unsure of herself. Here was Ranma, alone with her in the room. She thought back to some minutes ago, when the girls worked their system…
Flashback…
"Okay! Layla's had her fun, now let's try this again!" said Stella.
Layla could only blush at Stella's comment.
"We'll give the wheel another spin!" said Zing. The simple wheel containing the faces of the Winx girls sat on the coffee table, the 'contestants' surrounding it. Layla's face was taken off of it, so it only contained Bloom, Stella, Flora, Musa, and Tecna. Zing spins the arrow once more. "So who's it going to be this week? The suspense is too much!"
Bloom, Stella, Flora, Musa, and Tecna could only wait in anticipation for the arrow to stop spinning. Layla and the other Pixies sat at the sidelines as if they wee a studio audience. The Pixies started to cheer for her respective bonded partner.
Afterwards, the arrow starts to slow down, then finally lands on Tecna's image.
"This week's winner: Tecna!" said Zing as she spells out her name on the puzzle board.
"Yeah! Go Tecna!" said Digit.
"Awww…" said Chatta.
The remaining Faeries looked slightly disappointed that they didn't win the 'Date Ranma' system, but they were happy for their friend. They'll all get their chance soon.
"Congratulations, Tecna." Said Flora.
"Looks like you're up, girl!" said Musa.
"So what do you plan on doing?" asked Bloom.
"Uh…. Aheheheh…. To tell the truth… I never really thought about it…" Tecna admits in embarrassment.
"What? You, 'Miss Always-Prepared-for-Anything' is not prepared for this?" asked Stella in shock. "This is a really big thing, you know!"
"That's exactly the problem!" said Tecna. "I can be prepared for building stuff or school work, but not on matters like this!"
Flora walks up to her. "Tecna, this has nothing to do with being logical. It deals with the heart. Matters of the heart cannot be measured by science or magic, though I'm sure you already know that."
"She's right, Tecna. Just be natural and loosen up. I'm sure Ranma will appreciate you regardless on what you have planned for him. Just have fun." Said Bloom.
Tecna couldn't help but smile at her friends' support.
"Thanks, girls…"
End flashback…
This week, it was her time with Ranma. She wanted to make it special. Finally, Tecna mustered up her courage.
"So, Ranma, are you busy? Perhaps we can hang out together for today?"
Ranma turns to look at her. "Huh? Oh, alright then. What do you have in mind?"
"Well, Ranma, there is this…" Tecna takes the two devices next to the laptop. She hands one to Ranma.
Ranma takes and examines it. It looked like some kind of high-tech visor. It was colored snow white, and had a strange looking lens lining down the length in a long rectangle. It was colored a light blue, but didn't look to be made of glass or anything solid, rather it was like it was made of light. The ear pieces were rounded, designed to latch onto the ears and balance the visor out.
"What's this thing?" asked Ranma.
"A VR visor." Replied Tecna. "I built it myself."
"Cool. So… what're you planning on doing?" asked Ranma.
Tecna fits her VR visor over her face. "Just put it on and sit back."
Ranma looked confused, but fits the visor over his eyes. Tecna turns and begins typing on her laptop. "Systems engaged. Visors online." Ranma was surprised when the lenses on his visor came to life and started to glow. "Logging in. Subjects: Tecna and Ranma." (2)
"Huh? Wha-?"
He didn't have time to think as suddenly, everything around Ranma began moving at warp speed.
Cyberworld…
"Whoa… what a trip… what was that?" asked Ranma. He finds Tecna nowhere to be found. "Tecna?"
He took a moment to look about his surroundings. It was very odd indeed. Everything was like a black void. Not only that, but numerous green lines criss-crossed everywhere like a grid. The lines pulsated in and out while sparks traveled along them very quickly.
"What is this place?" asked Ranma to no one in particular.
"Welcome to Cyperspace, Ranma!"
Ranma turns towards the voice. Standing before him was Tecna.
"Tecna?" He recalled what she had said. "Cyberspace? You mean we're…"
"That's right, were in the computer network of the World Wide Web, as you call it." Replied Tecna. "We just used my laptop and visors as a dock to get in."
"Whoa…. I'm in a machine…" said Ranma. "Now what?"
"We'll just surf the web." Replied Tecna. She holds her hand out, suddenly a portal opens up before her. "The Web is a huge place. Come on!"
She grabs Ranma's hand and pulls him through, the portal closing once inside.
Ranma and Tecna find themselves in what looks like a high-tech city. Everything looked to be made of metal and pulsating with electricity. The striking thing, however, is that there are several internet windows floating about.
"I can't believe that all this is in a computer!" said Ranma.
"It's basically like anoter world, Ranma." Said Tecna. "Plus, we're cyber-bodies, meaning we're just like figments of our imaginations."
"What're you saying?"
"I'm saying that we could basically do anything here." Tecna demonstrates by focusing on herself and emitting a green aura, nearly blinding Ranma. Once the light died down, Tecna's appearance changed. Her usual attire was replaced by a dark purple tube top and mini-skirt ensemble, with dark purple wedge sandals and gold bracelets. Her body was also enhanced to look like her Enchantix mode, as her eyes had pink eye shadow and her violet hair lengthened to just past her shoulders. Needless to say, Ranma was speechless.
"Uh….."
"Something wrong, Ranma?"
Ranma shook his head hurriedly. "Oh no! Nothing at all! Ahahaha…"
Tecna could only smile at Ranma's reaction. She found it to be very cute. "Come on, there's much to see."
"Lead the way."
First packet…
Ranma was surprised to find himself at a grand park. He and Tecna were walking down a paved path across grassy plains. Several trees dotted the area and a big fountain up ahead, shooting up water. There were even benches and lightposts lining the walkways.
"It almost looks real…" said Ranma.
"Virtual environments tend to be like that." Said Tecna.
Ranma kneels down to feel the solid ground. "Even feels real."
"Everything's real in the cyber world." Tecna walks over to tap on a nearby lightpost. It gives off clanging noises. "See?"
"Heh, you're not kidding."
"So is this…" Tecna walks over towards the fountain. Dipping her hand in the water, she suddenly splashes towards Ranma, catching him by surprise.
"Whoa!" Ranma shields himself with his hands as the virtual water splashes at him, activating his curse. "Man… even the water…"
Tecna giggles at Ranma-chan. "I didn't think your curse would carry over in here as well."
"Well I guess it did." Said Ranma-chan in an indignant tone while drying herself.
"You know, Ranma, since these aren't our real bodies, we still have control over them."
"Oh yeah, you're right!" Ranma-chan focuses on herself, then reverts male again. "Man, this is awesome!"
"Now then, focus!"
Tecna splashes water at Ranma again. This time, Ranma kept in mind that he's a virtual body, and the water hits him. He was still male.
"All right! I didn't change this time!" said Ranma.
"Told you so."
"Would you like to go for a little stroll?"
Ranma looked at the enhanced Tecna nervously. "Sure thing…"
The violet-haired girl smiles as she took Ranma's arm in her own and pulled him down the walkways.
Cyberworld Nexus…
"What the…?"
Ranma was confused when he saw windows flying around the virtual city. Each one had two or more people sitting at a table talking with one another. Some just had random things going on in them, like one virtual guy instantly making a sculpture out of a boulder that just appeared in the room, or one who painted a photo image on a canvas in less than a second.
"Those must be chatrooms." Said Tecna. "People around the world chat with others from long distances this way."
"Must be convenient." Said Ranma. "What's with some of the split-second art shows?"
Tecna looks up and sees that some people were handing folders to each other along with canvases. "Oh, they must be file-sharing. Images, text files, whatever."
"So this is what it looks like when people download stuff, huh?" asked Ranma.
"Yeah, pretty much."
Looking over, they see a crowd of virtual people sitting before a podium stage. A man with a gavel was at the podium gesturing to an elaborate dolphin clock.
"The starting bid is $50. Do I hear fifty?"
"Fifty!"
"Fifty-five!"
"Sixty-nine!"
"Seventy-one!"
"An online auction." Said Tecna.
"Doesn't seem any different from a live one." Said Ranma.
Just across from the auction house was a store. Several virtual people were pushing aroung shopping carts full of items while others were checking out at the cash register.
"Is this all?"
"That's all."
"Your total is $250.00."
"Here you go." The customer gives the cashier a credit card, in which the numbers float off and are scanned in air.
"Received." The purchases suddenly disappeared, replaced with a form. "Your order will come in after five business days."
"Can't wait!"
Ranma raised an eyebrow. "Let me guess, an online store?"
"Precisely!" replied Tecna.
Second packet…
"Wow…" Ranma looked about the current area. It was lined with what looked like tennis courts. The thing was that the "racquets" were short thick bars, and the "ball" was a cube. (3)
"Online games." Said Tecna. "I challenge you to Pong!"
Ranma smirks. "You are so on!"
Pong table no. 874….
Ranma and Tecna stood on opposite sides of the virtual table, each holding a thick bar that floated before them. The cube floats down towards the center dividing line.
"You ready?" asked Tecna.
"Of course!" replied Ranma.
"PONG!"
The cube shoots off to Tecna's side. She moves the bar and bounces it towards Ranma. Ranma responds by bouncing the cube back at a wide angle, heading for Tecna's open side. She quickly runs with her bar to return it.
For a while, they kept returning the cube back to each other with no score. Tecna managed to force Ranma into returning the cube from one corner of his side. Seeing her chance, she aims at his unprotected corner. There was no way he could get there in time.
"Ha! Point!" called out Tecna.
"Not yet!" said Ranma.
"Huh?"
She saw Ranma quickly dash towards the other corner while ditching his bar. Was he nuts? How can he return the cube without the bar?
Ranma smirks at Tecna's confusion. He ditched the bar to lighten the load off himself. Before Tecna's shocked expression, Ranma lashes out with a spinning roundhouse kick at the cube, sending it hurtling back fast. Tecna's distraction cost her as the cube flew past her, scoring a point for Ranma.
"NOW it's point!"
Tecna gives a devious smirk. "Oh, you're going down now!"
Cyberworld Nexus…
Ranma and Tecna walked about the Cyberworld Nexus. They've spent quite some time playing those online games with each other: Tetris, Minesweeper, Cake Mania (who knew trying to make cakes fast would be so addicting?), and Spades to name a few. Ranma still needed work on the games involving cards, though.
"I've got to say, the Cyberworld is something else." Said Ranma.
"I'm glad you enjoyed it, Ranma." Said Tecna.
"Thanks for showing this to me, Tecna. I feel like I've been missing out on a lot of things."
"It's no problem."
As they walked, Ranma noticed a high-security portal. "Huh? What's that?"
"Oh, probably to someone else's PC." Replied Tecna. "The Cyberworld is the nexus point for all computers in the world."
"Really?" Ranma then got to thinking, then grins deviously. "ANY computer?"
"What's on your mind?"
"Well…"
Ranma quickly relays his plan to her, causing her to look up in surprise.
"Really?"
"Yeah, I feel as if I'm doing a public service here."
Tecna gazes into Ranma's depths. "This sounds so wrong…" Her mouth curls up into a mischievous grin. "I like it!"
PC portal #4895003271796…
"Well, here we are…"
Ranma and Tecna look up at the high security portal. It was a huge, twelve-foot circular opening sealed with heavy full-metal doors. On the front, it read "Keep out! Private line!"
"The portal to Nabiki's PC…" said Ranma.
"She seems to have it locked up tight." Said Tecna as she observed the door. "Must be something valuable in there."
"Nabiki tends to keep her secrets closely guarded." Said Ranma. "Hmmm… so how can we get in?"
"No worries. I'll just hack in."
Tecna holds out her hands, causing a green screen display to appear before her. She starts to rapidly type in keys on the virtual board. Finishing up, Tecna hits what might be the "enter" key, causing the virtual screen and keyboard to meld together. Ranma was surprised when the virtual glob started to take shape. Tecna smirks as the glob took the form of a five-foot shaft, then takes it in her hand.
"What is that?" asked Ranma.
Tecna doesn't say a word as she walks up to the heavy door and raises the shaft over her head. Suddenly, the end of the shaft forms into a huge double-bladed axe head two feet in length. She brings the virtual axe down on the door, hacking a huge gash in it. She turns to look at Ranma, who looked shocked at the whole thing.
"Just a simple hacking program."
Ranma shakes out of it. "Wow… when you said you'd hack into the PC, you REALLY mean it!"
Tecna smirks. "It's what I do!"
Nabiki's PC…
Ranma and Tecna had to fight off much of the PC's online security, which took the form of robotic guards and laser-mounted gun turrets. They were more of a nuisance than a threat, though. A ki blast here, a green lightning there, and those droids were down for the count.
"Wow, the security protocols on this PC are almost non-existant…" said Tecna. "Then again, this is just an Earth computer."
"Yeah, you must've tangled with worse before, huh?" asked Ranma.
"I have, actually." Replied Tecna. "Ten times worse than what we've seen here."
"Whoooo…. Must've been bad."
"Yeah, there were times where I've almost been deleted."
Walking around, they've finally come across a pedestal before a huge screen hanging in the air.
"This must be it…" said Ranma.
Tecna materializes a scanning device over her face and looks the mechanism over. "It is, the central data bank of Nabiki's computer."
They walk over to the pedestal, which forms a keyboard. "Let's crack you open!"
Tecna works her techno magic on the database, easily gaining access to its contents. Ranma was surprised at the files being displayed.
"My God, she's got dirt on nearly everyone at Furinkan!" said Ranma. All of Nabiki's files contained personal secrets of many students and even teachers. There were notes and photos of things people didn't want others to know about. Each one also had a list of debts and bills owed to her, to keep track of her money. He frowns as he noticed that his list was the longest. "Looks like she never got around to canceling my debts."
"I can't believe she'd do this!" said Tecna in disgust. "Sticking her nose in other people's personal lives and blackmailing them for money!"
"Sadly enough, this was the only known source of income for the Tendo Dojo." Said Ranma.
"What? But what about normal income?" asked Tecna. "They live in a dojo, don't they? Does the owner not charge for lessons or something?"
"Er… yeah… that's the thing… aside from me, the family, or any uninvited guests, no one else ever uses the dojo. Come to think of it, I don't ever recall Mr. Tendo or Pop teaching any classes."
"But… that's what a dojo is for!"
"Yeah, they're just lazy, expecting me to merge the schools through marriage and run it while they live off of my hard work… All they cared about is their "future of the Anything-Goes" that they've neglected everything else. Now that I think about it, that dojo is nothing more than used space."
Tecna could only frown. When Ranma was living at the Tendo Dojo, he'd get worked on in some way, expected to fix problems that get dumped on him. In a way, he was re-enacting the classic tale of Cinderella.
"This may be the only way they get income, but it is totally unethical. It's time these people learned the value of hard work!" said Tecna. The techno faerie whips out her PDA and hooks it to the database console. "Say goodbye to psychological leverage!"
Immediately, Tecna started to delete all of the delicate files Nabiki has on people. There's no possible way Nabiki could remember each and every debt amount owed to her. Ranma's insane debt was no more.
"Thanks, Tecna. Don't know how I can thank you." said Ranma.
"Oh, I might have something in mind…" said Tecna in a sly manner.
"Huh?"
"Well, that's the last of them. Before we split, there's something I want to leave behind…" Tecna then conjures up a two foot long capsule and sets it before the pedestal. Flipping open a lid in its side, she begins typing a code on the mini keypad. She quickly shuts the lid and turns to Ranma when a timer for sixty seconds appeared on the capsule's side. "We'd better go, now!"
Ranma didn't ask questions as he took Tecna's hand and started to run towards the portal leading to the Cyberworld Nexus. They could hear the beeping of the timer behind them, growing fainter, and the time within beeps shortening. He looks in shock that the heavy reinforced door they came through was starting to seal up its gash. "Oh crap!" Finally, they heard an explosion behind them. Bolts of green and black electricity lashed out everywhere, and started to head right for Ranma and Tecna!
"JUMP!"
With a final burst of speed, Ranma and Tecna made a mad dash towards the door gash and jumped through, just before the gash reseals itself. They both rolled to safety and looked up at the door, which gives off a bit of black and green sparks before sealing shut once again.
"Mission accomplished." Said Tecna as she started to get up.
"Yeah. My debt is gone, and Nabiki can't muscle people for money." Said Ranma as he got up. He looks over to Tecna, then down, and blushes as he realized that they were still holding hands. "Uhh…"
Tecna giggled. "You were quite great back there, Ranma."
"Same with you, Tecna…"
"By the way, remember how I said that there might be a way for you to thank me for canceling out your debts?"
"Huh? Oh… yeah?"
Tecna loops her arms around Ranma's neck. "I've just thought of something…" Before Ranma could react, Tecna closed the distance between them and locked lips with him. Ranma was surprised at Tecna's action, but soon, he wrapped his arms around her waist and returned the kiss. Even though they were both virtual, the osculation felt all too real.
They separated after a minute. Tecna blushes and simply says, "You're welcome…"
It was then that they started flashing in ad out until they vanished from the Cybeworld.
Saotome guest room…
Ranma just took off the visor and finds himself seated before the laptop. Sitting beside him was Tecna, who had taken her visor off. Naturally, she was reverted to normal as opposed to her virtual look.
"That was some trip…" said Ranma.
"You liked it?" asked Tecna.
"Yeah, it was great!"
"I'm glad…"
"By the way, Tecna, what was that bomb capsule for?" asked Ranma.
"It's a special virus I've created." Replied Tecna.
"Oh?"
"Yep! How it works is that it will automatically delete any data similar to what we've deleted from any external drives she might put in her PC. I figured that she may have external backups in case something major happened to the main source."
"Ooooooohh… how sneaky of you!" laughed Ranma. "She won't be blackmailing anyone soon!"
"If she wants to earn money, she'll have to do it the honest way."
"I'd say this turned out to be quite a fun day, huh?" Ranma sits back and reclines on his seat.
"Yes, it has…" said Tecna. She looked over to Ranma and blushes as she noticed a smidge of lipstick on Ranma's mouth, which she knows wasn't there before logging in.
Nabiki's room…
"WHAT!? WHERE'RE MY FILES!?"
Guess who came home to take stock on the debts owed to her?
"No problem… good thing I keep a back-up…" She plugs in her external hard drive into the USB to take records of what money she's got owed to her. However…
"EMPTY!? BUT THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!!! NOOOOO!!!"
To be continued…
Preview…
Ranma: Putting one over Nabiki was a great experience!
Tecna: It sure was!
Bloom: Nerima is just getting more interesting!
Stella: Hey, what's with the duck?
Musa: That pig, too!
Ranma: Looks like Ryoga managed to find his way back, again.
Flora: Something's wrong… this duck doesn't seem…
Layla: Next time, on Ranma Club, 'Wash Clean! More Loose Ends!'
Ranma: Just what do you want now… Mousse…
Ending (Tenchi Muyo! Style, 'Talent for Love')
Kiko pads in on a blank background. He looks about and sees nothing. Neko-Shampoo and Kitsune-Ukyou walk in and join Kiko. All three look bored at the blank scenery. Kiko gets the light bulb and pulls art supplies from behind him.
Life is so full of hurry and hustle
Sometimes I think it's passing us by
The days are like hours, hours like minutes
I'm caught up in it till I look in your eyes
Kiko takes a pencil and starts drawing on the background. Neko-Shampoo and Kitsune-Ukyou watches Kiko draw out the Saotome complex in the back, but it looks like a kid did it. Kiko's pencil breaks midway, so he quickly goes to sharpen it. He resumes drawing and completes it.
And to my surprise I find there is a heaven
Timeless and real, making me feel
Once Kiko was done, Neko-Shampoo and Kitsune-Ukyou each take a brush and started painting in the colors at a rapid pace.
Free and alive!
The cat and fox take a pose once they were done painting within the lines. Kiko looks shocked.
You touch me, you kiss me, and time has no meaning
I'm on a rocket to some other zone
The three small animals look to the background, admiring their work.
Baby, you thrill me - whatever you're doing
Don't think of stopping until we are light-years away
Kiko looks down, thinking the work is missing something, then rises his head at another idea. He runs off screen. Neko-Shampoo and Kitsune-Ukyou look off after him.
All alone, cause I want to keep this
Treasure for my very own
Your talent for love
Kiko runs back in carrying thin cardboard cards. He puts them down and starts drawing and coloring on one of them. Whipping out scissors, he cuts the card and stands it up in front of the background. It was a cut-out of Bloom. Neko-Shampoo and Kitsune-Ukyou nod in understanding and start helping Kiko make cut-outs.
You touch me, you kiss me, and time has no meaning
I'm on a rocket to some other zone
They stand up cut-outs of Stella, Flora, Musa, and Tecna next to Bloom's.
Baby, you thrill me - whatever you're doing
Don't think of stopping until we are light-years away
They then stand up cut-outs of Layla, Nodoka, and the Pixies near the rest.
All alone, cause I want to keep this
Treasure for my very own
Your talent for love
They finally put up Ranma's cut-out in front of the group. The rabbit, cat, and fox take a pose near the cut-out group, proud of their work. A small torrent of water falls on the Ranma cut-out, turning into a Ranma-chan cut-out with an annoyed expression. Cut-outs of Sky, Brandon, Helis, Riven, Timmy, and Nabu all appear from behind the Ranma-chan cut-out with amused looks on their faces.
End ending
Author's notes:
Sorry for the late update, people. I had a lot of stuff going on in RL, and it sucks. Still, managed to get this done. Whoo-hoo!
(1) Nabiki has done some schemes in which Ranma's life was put at risk. First was his fight against Ryoga, and when everyone betted on Ranma to win, Nabiki tried to make sure he loses so she could collect the profits. This was a guy out for his blood, for crying out loud! Another instance was when Shampoo was pursuing Ranma-chan, and Nabiki offered her "services" to help Ranma (providing hot water to save him from getting killed), at a hefty price, of course. She also had Ryoga splash Ranma everytime so that Nabiki can capitalize on Ranma's desperation to avoid the murderous Shampoo. Let's not forget how she invited all of Ranma's "friends" to the wedding just so she can collect on the customary family donations required from guests (Kuno came at Ranma with a real katana). She does this without a second thought and is all "Eh, he'll live."
(2)Much like logging into QuestWorld from The Real Adventures of Johnny Quest.
(3)You gamers remember Pong?
ThePageMaster1630: The guy who did "Fist of the Pikachu" didn't change his name. Known as Hung Nguyen (in my favorite authors list).
Kamen Rider Den-O: There's still more to come!
Jerry Unipeg: Thanks. That last bit in the fight was actually inspired by Yusuke's fight with that mutant doctor in the Dark Tournament in Yuyu Hakusho.
Andrew9000: If this doesn't mean the end of Kodachi, I'd say another butt-whooping is in order, ne?
Firehedgehog: Yeah, I'm evil for doing that to Nabiki, eh? Can't say she didn't deserve it, though.
Ryan L. Spradling: Glad to have gotten it in in time.
Rictor Yagami: As I said, Akane hardly, if ever, had to suffer a beating.
Dumbledork: I admit, it was something experimental, but it worked!
James Birdsong: I'm glad people think so. I never expected how much, and it's a pleasant surprise.
Princes Asuna: Oh, there will be more. I'm not even close to finished just yet… (insert evil laughter)
Kidcrud: Good things come to those who wait.
Erick Genryusai: Oh god… that's a horrifying image… hmmm… Flora vs. Kodachi? No contest there!
Bloomforever: Ah, so you found this in its new category! Glad to see you're still continuing!
God of all: I plan to as long as I've got the creative juices flowing
Kopakanuvafan20: It was something I came up with when sketching an illustration for Hung Nguyen's Tekkadread fic.
OBSERVER01: Thanks for the input, man. Right on! 4Kids suck! I don't know about Ranma/Bleach. I'm not knowledgable enough about Bleach to make a legitamate fic on. I need to watch and understand it all first.
Cyclon One: Wait 'til you get to the other chapters…
Arsao Tome: Hmmm? I'm still waiting on that conclusion to your spin-off man.
Ghost in the Machine: Excuse me? Kodachi's psycho. She tried to KILL Ranma-chan in their first match (stab her face out with the spiky club, tried to blow her up with a bomb, tried to slice her in two with that hoop).
AMWOOD co: Akane the most supportive? Don't make me laugh. If she was, then she wouldn't give up on Ranma so easily (the contrary jewel incident, the Japanese Naniichuan in the girls' locker room incident, the red thread of fate incident, the incident with the return of Lin Lin and Ran Ran, her callously switching her engagement to Nabiki, her siding with Ryoga during the breaking point training, and a whole slew of others). Supporting Ranma due to Happosai's return is understandable; Happosai was terrorizing the household, so of course they'd need Ranma to take care of it since everyone else is too much of a wuss to handle him themselves. Plus, the Akane fans are just as guilty in that poem. They tend to ignore the good stuff Shampoo, Ukyou, or anyone else and just focus on the bad, simply because Akane's the lead female, which is the only thing that's going for her.
Today's…. RAI vs. 4KIDS RANT!
In Professor Avalon's Secret (US: Angel of Doom), where Tecna suspects Avalon as being an enemy.
Several changes, one in particular left a huge plot hole.
This is when you see Palladium's new look for the first time.
4Kids: Palladium says that he visited some hot springs resort and a potion from Wizgiz, which caused his change in looks. (O_O)
Rai: Palladium explains that his form had evolved, as all elves do (the guy is obviously an elf).
Palladium teaches a new spell, but it was different. This is the start of the plot hole....
4Kids:
Palladium teaches the "Sphere of Truth" which supposed to act as some super truth serum. (Palladium: "Fine, but if you mess up, you'll wind up telling all your embarassing secrets.") Uh huh....
Palladium: "Okay, select a target and aim well. We don't want to start any scandals, now do we?"
*Amaryll grins deviously and shoots it at Stella, but Palladium quickly stops it*
Palladium: "Amaryll! We don't use spells on other students! Detention for a week!"
Amaryll: "Uh.... sorry, Professor..."
Rai:
Palladium teaches the "Plasma Sphere", which is an offense spell of firing a concentrated ball of extreme heat. ("But remember, one syllable in the wrong place could burn all the air right out of this room.") Wow.... that's quite a dangerous spell... one could probably get killed even...
Palladium: "Now choose a target and launch it. Go on, but keep your focus, or your classmates will wish they've worn sunscreen."
*Amaryll grins deviously and shoots it at Stella, but Palladium quickly stops it*
Palladium: "Amaryll! Do that again and I'll have you expelled! That's CLEAR, I hope?"
Amaryll: "Uh.... y-yes, sir..."
4Kids Amaryll wanted to humiliate Stella, but Rai Amaryll just wanted to fry her. Whoa.... violent...
This is where the plothole happens. Tecna practices the spell she learned from Palladium to use on Avalon to expose him.
4Kids:
Tecna hits Avalon with the "Sphere of Truth", which for some reason caused an explosion (!? Truth serum is dangerous...). Faragonda and the faculty explain that although Tecna researched the prophecy, her logic was simply flawed. This in itself is weird. Tecna had a flaw in her logic? But she's a half-android! Also, she doesn't seem the type to screw up her spells badly. If it were a real Sphere of Truth, it would've worked, considering that we all know by now that the Avalon there is an imposter.
Rai:
Tecna hits Avalon with the Plasma Sphere, expecting him to revert to his true form in pain, but gets confused when he doesn't (that's because Darkar made him from a REAL Paladin, so his identity not getting blown makes sense). Faragonda explained to Tecna that the prophecy that she read was actually from a book written by a famous COMEDIAN. Tecna merely forgot to check the validity of the prophecy. It was all fake.
Making it a Sphere of Truth completely conflicts with the later episode when the fake's identity is brought to light. Nice going, 4Kids.....
A special sneak peek of a scene I plan on putting up in the way later chapters of Ranma Club. This occurs sometime after Ranma and company return back to Magix after their time on Earth. I'd say in about 20 chapters...
Exclusive peek!
Unknown area…
Six figures werelying unconscious on what looks like a desert in an unknown area. One of them slowly started to come to.
"Ooooh… my head…" The figure look around. "Huh? Where am I?"
The figure looks and sees one of the other starting to wake up.
"Ow… What happened?" The second figure turns and looks at the first in shock. "… Sky…?"
"Brandon?"
"What's going on here?" asked Brandon. "And you look… transparent…"
Sky looks down at his hands and sees that he is indeed slightly transparent. "The same with you!"
It was Brandon's turn to be shocked at his condition. "What is this…?"
Sky looks over to his left and sees another unconscious figure. "Over there!"
The two Specialists get up and look over the figure who was starting to stir.
"Mmmm…. What hit me?"
"Yo, Riven!" Brandon called out.
Riven looks up to see his two friends. "Huh? Sky? Brandon? Where are we?"
"We're not sure, ourselves." Replied Sky.
"Hey! Over here!"
The three boys turn to see Helia, Timmy, and Nabu making their way towards them.
"Guys! Are we glad to see you!"
"This doesn't look like Ranma's mind at all…" said Helia.
"That would explain why were all more transparent than usual…" said Timmy.
"You're right, we're not in Ranma's mind at all." Said Nabu.
"So then where is this place?" asked Riven.
"Hold on! Last thing I remember while we were one was that our ship got blasted out of the air while we were flying over…" started Sky.
"… this desert planet!" finished Helia. "Does that mean, we're in the real world?"
Timmy suddenly dropped to his knees, holding his sides. "Oh, it hurts!"
"Timmy! What's wrong?" asked Nabu as they all gathered around.
"I don't know… but this is impossible! We're nothing but souls now! How can I be feeling pain?"
Suddenly, the other five boys started to feel a little wobbly.
"Now that you mention it… I'm not feeling so hot myself…" said Brandon.
"This pain… what is this!?" said Riven.
Sky fought to stay up, then something caught the corner of his eye. "There's someone lying over there…"
The Specialists look over to where Sky was facing. They could distinctly make out the silhouette of a person lying unconscious in the sand.
"Who… is that?" asked Nabu.
They all slowly walked over to the figure. When they got closer, they became horrified at the sight.
"No… it can't be!" said Timmy.
"I… I don't believe it…" said Helia.
Lying there in the sand before them was none other than…
"RANMA!?"
The pigtailed martial artist was on his back, unconscious. His body looked fine, but his eyes were wide open and without pupils. He didn't seem to be moving or breathing.
"This can't be! How did we get outside of Ranma?" asked Brandon.
Riven waves a hand in front of Ranma's face. "Guys? He's not moving…"
"Of course he's not moving!" said Timmy. "A body without a soul is nothing more than a lifeless doll! The fact that we're out here looking at him like this is even further proof of that!"
"He's right, guys, but there's something else…" said Nabu. "A body and soul are needed to exist and live. They're nothing by themselves. As Timmy said, a body without a soul is a lifeless doll. A soul without a body is just as bad! Souls can't live without a body!"
"Just what're you getting at, Nabu!?" asked Riven.
"I'm saying that Ranma needs us to live. However, the opposite is also true!" said Nabu. "We also need him to live! After all, all of us make up Ranma's soul. If we don't fuse ourselves back into Ranma soon, we'll ALL die!"
The Specialists cringed at that revelation.
End scene
BTW, how you guys like my edited logo on my profile page? See you all next chapter!